genderplex \’jen-dur-,pleks\ the predicament of a person in a restaurant who is unable to determine his or her designated restroom

There are many ways to label public restrooms, but when you end up going into a themed restaurant, and you kind of don’t know which way to go when you have to go, best to ask a server. Some places might use the symbols for Venus and Mars, or if you are in a ethnic restaurant, they might use the language of origin, like “Hombres” and “Mujeres” or “Herren” and “Damen”. Some place try to become even more cute by using the terms for animals like “rams” and “ewes”, or “toms” and “pusses”. If it is horse-themed place, there are so many terms for various gendered and even non-gendered status on horses, you might end up taking care of business the way horses do. Not that I’ve ever seen a restaurant with a cat theme, but I guess I should not give restauranteurs ideas that will confuse us even further. So wherever you go, if you bring the kids, remember to mark where the facilities are, and figure out which one you need to use, because they won’t be trying to translate. Read more...(278 words, 1 image, estimated 1:07 mins reading time)